News

Consortium Welcomes Four New Members

Chicago Wilderness is pleased to welcome four new members as of June 2008, bringing total membership to 233.

The Chicago Cultural Alliance (CCA) is a growing consortium of 21 ethnic museums and cultural centers that create a vehicle for people to examine their roots and explore other communities and traditions. CCA launched the "Youth Connecting Communities with Nature" program in support of the Chicago Wilderness Leave No Child Inside initiative to connect children to nature. The Global Alliance of Artists (GAA) seeks to unleash the creativity of artists and communities to help solve social and environmental challenges on a local, national, and international level. GAA participated in the 2007 "Cool Globes" climate change education project along Chicago's lakefront. Red Oak Nature Center, part of the Fox Valley Park District, can be found in the midst of 40 wooded acres on the east bank of the Fox River in Batavia, Illinois. Red Oak features three hiking trails, an observation deck over the Fox River, and Devil's Cave. Finally, the mission of the Upper Des Plaines River Ecosystem Partnership (UDPREP) is to preserve, protect, and enhance the Upper Des Plaines River watershed through stakeholder education, collaboration, and technical assistance. UPDREP hosts educational seminars on effective conservation practices, offers grant proposal review services, and works with community members to identify funding opportunities for their environmental projects.